User Reviews

Strengths: Great sturdy fork. Lockout is magnificent and the preload is very easy to adjust. Handles we'll and is great for nasty bumps!

Weaknesses: Nothing

Bottom Line:

Great fork used it at the Youyangs many times. It is light and comfortable it also takes light and hard bumps with ease. It isn't a $800 fork but for the price it is amazingly good! Recommended as a second fork much better than rockshox dart!

I recently I purchased and had installed the Rock Shox XC32 Solo Air fork for my 29er hardtail . It's awesome. I know that there are better more expensive Rock Shox. But the XC32 solo is awesome, smooth lightweight fork for the money. This fork literally dropped 2 lbs from the weight of my bike. If you're upgrading from a heavy clunky Suntour, you won't believe the weight and performance difference. If you're upgrading from a heavy suntour, your can't go wrong upgrading to the Rock Shox. XC 32 Solo Air. This fork has made riding my mtb fun again.

Installed this fork as an upgrade on my hardtail and I must say so far so good! The damping is a lot smoother than I had expected and overall I am very happy with my purchase. If you are somebody who is looking to upgrade your mountain bike but don't necessarily want to break the bank this is the fork for you.

Weaknesses: Well it's no featherweight but the real let-down is the TK damping.

Bottom Line:

Everything is relative. Sure, it's not light but at the price it's not too bad and the stiffness offered by the thick stanchions and effective lock-out makes up for it as they really makes a big difference when climbing and spinning along the road. The adjustments work ok too and give you meaningful changes in the set-up.

It looses points for one reason, the TK damping cartridge. It's not total garbage but it's not very great either. While the fork absorbs bumps well enough the primitive damping means the front end never feels totally secure and planted. I don't think it's even as good as the damping on the original Tora, which was a very similar fork. You can twiddle the knobs as much as you want you'll still be stuck with a washy fork that is a little unsettling at speed.

The fork is still good value and a solid product but without more effective damping it's a chilli short of beong a great one.

Strengths: For the Price I feel is pretty strong fork. It handles well and has good control.

Weaknesses: A little on the heavy side and a little noisy on rough terrain.

Bottom Line:

I purchase the 2013 version of this fork not expecting much for the price and it simply proved me wrong. I swapped out my suntour fork for this one and it completely transformed my bike. I now ride the trails with more confidence and speed. Cornering is excellent, going over large rocks, logs, roots and stumps is no loner an issue. I am truly please with this purchase and would recommend this fork to anyone who is looking for an upgrade that won't hurt your pocket.

Overall Rating:

Value Rating:

Submitted by
Eric McDonald

Date Reviewed: June 14, 2013

Strengths: Looks good I guess

Weaknesses: Everything else

Bottom Line:

Hit a root on the second ride with the "poploc" on. Fork literally exploded. The whole lockout portion of the fork launched out and was hanging from the handle bars by the cable. Cheap junk...

Overall Rating:

Value Rating:

Submitted by
Rob

Date Reviewed: May 6, 2013

Strengths: See weakness

Weaknesses: Fork came with my Trek Mamba. Gap between dropouts is 98.5mm. Went back to the bike shop and measured fork on another bike, also 98.5mm. Fork is too narrow to fit on bike mount without grinding 1.5mm off mount. I talked to Rockshox tech support who said the tolerance is 98-102mm. Tech told me to give him SN, which is supposed to be on back of head. No SN there. I'm calling BS on that. Cheap Chinese crap.

Bottom Line:

See weakness

Overall Rating:

Value Rating:

Submitted by
Mayhem
a Weekend Warrior
from Upland Ca. U.S.

Date Reviewed: March 8, 2012

Strengths: Stiff, plush, very cool looking.

Weaknesses: Weight if any.

Bottom Line:

I love this fork! Was a little concerned about putting a 100mm travel fork on my 1999 bike, which came with a Rockshox Jett C, elastomer sprung fork, with about 2" of travel, but this fork feels great! It's 1/2 to 1 pound heavier than my old fork but the performance is very much worth it! They look really cool too in black.

Strengths: Love rockshox, this fork has nice 32mm sanctions. Nice lock out so you can make this fork stiff, feels almost fully rigid. Very plush and smooth nice rebound which is adjustable. 100mm travel is good for what i do and there is plenty of room for nice size tires. awesome fork v brake compatible. Great price, I was hsocked it was so cheap!

Weaknesses: A little heavy not too bad though. A hell of a lot lighter than my stock Suntour.

Bottom Line:

Great fork. I recommend for the money you cant beat it. does good on rocks and potholes or w.e. good xc light mountain fork

Strengths: Bike ridden is a Diamondback HT, trails are very tree rooty with pretty much no "drops". I have ridden for a couple of years and needed a new fork bad, seals were blown in my old one. So put the XC 32 on and set spring pre-load on around medium and went riding. Fork is stiff, bombs over roots with no surprises, keeps track on trail with no washouts, and generally does a good job. Fork let me rip through root sections with good confidence.

Weaknesses: none that i can think of

Bottom Line:

I think its a good buy for the price, might not be the lightest but is stiff and handles rough stuff with ease.

Related XC 32 TK Forum Posts

Hello,
I am mechanically fairly adept, but new to suspension forks.
Got this fork and wanted to check out which coil I had. Took off the preload cap and unscrewed the cover. This exposed the coil and I see that it is red meaning a medium coil. Good enough. Looking at the charts I see that my ... Read More »

Just getting back into mtnbking after a long hiatus. I recently purchased a Marin Pioneer Trail 29er which came with Suntour XCT shocks. I am wanting to upgrade the forks but not break the bank doing so. Would the Rock Shox XC 32's be an upgrade? I was hoping to stay under $200 but do not want to sp ... Read More »

I looked at the parts diagram and it looked like a drop in replacement. I purchased the RockShox XC32 Spring Internals Left 26/29 120 Solo Air replacement part, but have encountered an issue with the install.
When I install the Solo Air it doesn't fully seat so I can't engage the threads on the top ... Read More »

Facing a bit of a crossroad with purchasing a new front fork. My existing RS Pilots gave up the ghost on the weekend after landing too heavily on the front of the bike - not a bad run considering their age.
Now I am looking at upgrading from that pogo slush feeling to something that performs bett ... Read More »